Be carefull cat owners. Dumb thing I did.

[ultrarunner]

I have two stories that are related...
My grandfather told me his brother had to get the shots and it was very painful...
He was born in 1910 and his brother Ivy was exposed...
I am not sure the exact year or time...
Back 40 years ago or so I witnessed a racoon in the middle of the day sauntering across the front yard of our house...
At my youthful age I knew he was rabid...
I was driving the car up from my grandparents house and proceeded to go into the house knowing that a rabid racoon was in the front yard...
I told mom to get me the shotgun...
When I came out on the poor creature was walking across the porch...
I just froze at the door while he walked across the car port and then out the driveway into the field...
The shotgun dispatched him...
Put on gloves and buried the critter...

Rare but deadly...
That is rabies...
The county would offer rabies shots to all dogs and cats in our area back in the 60's when I was attending grade school...
You really didn't think that much about it at the time but it was just something that we did since all our dogs and cats were on the farm...

Good advise on here...
I would personally not take any chances with it and get the shots...

Lots of Racoons, Skunks, Feral Cats, Possum, Deer, Foxes, etc... here... but discharge of a fire arm outside your home and your troubles have only begun.

 

[oosik]

There was the one time that I shot a skunk and questioned if it was rabid. Does no good to bury dead animals - the coyotes will dig anything up and eat it. Into the burn barrel and burn to ash. Rather long process - quite a bit of firewood.

 

[vvanders]

Lots of Racoons, Skunks, Feral Cats, Possum, Deer, Foxes, etc... here... but discharge of a fire arm outside your home and your troubles have only begun.

My only experience was something similar, racoon out in broad daylight stumbling around a suburb north of Seattle. Pretty obviously a high chance of rabies.

Called the non-emergency line to get animal control out. Was told that there's no animal control available in the area, period. Asked if I could dispatch and was told only under life threatening conditions despite the fact that it had climbed the side of the house and was trying to get in through the windows.

Ended up camping out in the house for an hour or so until it wandered off and always wondered what happened to it. Seems short-sighted to not have animal control and yet strongly discourage dealing with a feral animal from a distance. I know wasn't going to get within 30ft of the thing, racoons can be fast and gnarly when they set their mind to it.

 

[k0ua]

There was the one time that I shot a skunk and questioned if it was rabid. Does no good to bury dead animals - the coyotes will dig anything up and eat it. Into the burn barrel and burn to ash. Rather long process - quite a bit of firewood.

Yep, fire is best for destroying pathogens.

 

[k0ua]

racoons can be fast and gnarly when they set their mind to it.

Yeah, and they have pretty good teeth too!.

 

[vvanders]

Yeah, and they have pretty good teeth too!.

Yeah, I've heard more than a few stories of people trying to chase them away from a garbage can only to get more than they bargained for.

 

[ultrarunner]

I know wasn't going to get within 30ft of the thing, racoons can be fast and gnarly when they set their mind to it.

Yes they can and so can rats the size of small cats... they will charge when cornered.

 

[k0ua]

Yeah, I've heard more than a few stories of people trying to chase them away from a garbage can only to get more than they bargained for.

We used to have a big old half tame outside only cat (before the coyotes ate him), and he was really large and well muscled, but when the raccoons came up on the porch, he would try his best to get well away from them. He had more brains than to mess with them. They are pretty tough customers. Nothing a 12 gauge won't fix mind you but you don't always have one handy. The 85 year old neighbor really thinned them out one evening with his .22 rifle. It sounded like an MG-42 for a few seconds as he opened up on the whole bunch.

 

[Wagtail]

James, I love the description of the coffee-table toy.

However, just like Roger Rabbit would explode (despite holding it in as long as possible):

... "shave and a haircut---SIX BITS!...

It's TWO bits!!!!!! As in a Quarter. 25 cents. The "bits" comes from the Spanish coin pieces-of-eight, which could be broken into equal portions to make, well, change.

I think that the modern equivalent would be to sing, "Take me hoooome, country rooad..."

 

[MossRoad]

Yes they can and so can rats the size of small cats... they will charge when cornered.

Working downtown for about 30 years, many night shifts, I can't count the number of times people would come running into the building screaming about the huge rat they just saw in the warehouse or alley....

it was always a possum. :laughing: